I recall a time when Magic: the Gathering captured my imagination.

I also recall a time collecting comic books, playing D&D, discovering anime, watching old westerns, The Transformers, reading The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings and so many other things I love that they would only serve to make this list tiresome and further affirm that I am, indeed, a senior citizen.
None of my nostalgic feels need to be integrated into M:tG…full stop.

Magic is, in and of itself, a nostalgia engine.
It nets nothing by introducing outside intellectual properties into its system other than of course…money.
Magic is now become a tool to milk money from your pockets in the guises of perceived scarcity/rarity, card power and collectability.
Seemingly driving this (beside a corporate cash grab) is a perceived notion from a mostly younger consumer that believes these products are actual long term ‘investment tools’.
I’m not saying that collectibles are not investments because they can be. They’re just one form of investment and one that needs to be considered very carefully.
You need understanding of what a collectible is and what is not.
What is its true rarity or scarcity, not perceived.
What is its true value which can be based on a number of points which may be dependent on any number of other points.
You need to be familiar and comfortable dealing in the actual ‘trade’ profession of the collectible market you are buying and selling in.
You most certainly need to understand risk, risk, risk. How much you are willing to take on and what that really means.
Just a few point to consider, there are plenty more.

Before you dump your money into the next hot M:tG IP release you may be better served by maxing out your 401K, IRA and HSA for the month.
Paying your damn bills for the month…completely.
Paying down your credit card debt and loans for the month.
Paying extra into eliminating your debt early.
Carry your own damn water people!
IF you find yourself with an abundance of cash after paying your bills, cost of living expenses, debt, retirement investments maybe then dip your toe into a collectible investment.
But, at this point will it really be the newest ‘Fill in the Blank’ M:tG IP crossover…really?

How many more outside IP’s can be shoehorned into this game that once created joy, memories and community all on its own?
How long will we continue to let this kind of self destructive behavior go on?
When will this corruption fully take hold and kill the host, leaving a bloated turd to cook in the sun?
Maybe that day will never come.
Maybe Magic will simply secure a spot on the dung heap of IP crossover games like Monopoly, Risk and their ilk that persist in perpetuity and annuity for countless ages reborn anew every Christmas on the shelves of Walmart and Target as a kitschy seasonal item in crystal clear plastic wrap.

Stop consuming these products.
By voting with YOUR money, there’s still time to turnabout.

Play Magic like it’s 1993.